Cotmania. Vol. X. 1934-5

{PRESS CUTTING}
EASTERN DAILY PRESS, FRIDAY, JUNE 21ST, 1935
COTMAN AND STARK
GUESTS OF SIR A.M. SAMUEL
SHOWN PAINTINGS OF THEIR ANCESTORS
To the Editor
Sir - The following communication may perhaps interest those of your readers who are familiar with the works of the Norwich School of painters:
We are not ghosts.
We are re-incarnations.
We are alive.
Neither of us knew of the existence of the other, and neither of us had ever seen until to-day the person who brought us together. For long each had desired to see the paintings in the one case of those of a great grandfather and grandfather, and in the other of a grandfather, which were known to form part of the collection of Sir Arthur Michael Samuel, M.P.
Upon asking separately, without knowing that the other had taken the same course, that we might see the collection of Sir Arthur Michael, he, with sly humour, managed to arrange for a simultaneous visit by us to his house. So to-day we met and to our astonishment and, at first, unbelief, Sir Michael Arthur introduced us the one to the other: "Mr. John Sell Cotman, may I introduce you to Mr. James Stark. Mr. James Stark, may I introduce you to Mr. John Sell Cotman." We then interchanged certain reminiscences of our respective ancestors which we had heard from our parents and grandparents, notably the story of nearly a hundred years ago of the visit of John Sell Cotman, with his bloodhounds, to James Stark.
To-day the undersigned great grandson of John Sell Cotman saw the oil painting by his great grandfather in which are the portraits of John Sell Cotman himself and his three sons, one of whom, John Joseph Cotman, whom our host knew, grandfather of the undersigned, drew a portrait of our host's father, Benjamin Samuel, of Norwich, which was seen by us. The other undersigned, the grandson of James Stark, saw the paintings by his grandfather of St. Benet's Abbey and Eaton Old Church.
Sir Arthur Michael Samuel brought into the room an engraving by Batchelor of the late Mr. James Reeve, the personal friend of all three of us, because we felt that the spirit of James Reeve must have been hovering over our meeting as we looked at the pictures done by our ancestors.
If there are still living any John Cromes or George Vincents, direct descendants of the painters so named, let them communicate with us and we will try to arrange a meeting in Norwich Castle for all of us face to face with pictures by our ancestors.
-Yours truly,
JOHN SELL COTMAN, F.C.A.,
Emmer Green, Reading.
JAMES STARK
Strathmore, Caterham-on-the-Hill, Surrey
June 11th.